[Spoilers] "Pet Sematary" versus "Pet Sematary": from book to screen



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This article discusses elements of the plot of the novel and the two adaptations of the film, which is an obvious mess.

Stephen KingThe beloved novel has spent years in a drawer until it reluctantly entrusts it to a publisher to fulfill its contractual obligations. It was a dark novel that struck too close to home; King is based largely on his own life and on his children. He therefore felt that the novel was too terrible to be published. Not terrible in terms of writing, but terribly dark. But once the novel was finally released, he quickly became a favorite of Constant Reader and touted among his most frightening works of all time. A story about the Creed family moving from hectic life to a quiet little town finds nothing but tragedy, exacerbated by the supernatural burial place in their own backyard. The themes of mourning remain timeless.

The novel received its first adaptation in 1989 and the screenplay was written by King himself. Realized by Mary Lambert, the film delivered an almost faithful adaptation of the novel with some major exclusions in the interest of rhythm and duration. Lambert chose to launch Miko Hughes as a pledge when the studio wanted twins turned out to be a vital decision that helped make the film a lasting favorite. As he made his choice to sink Andrew Hubastek play the monstrous sister of Rachel Creed, Zelda.

In a new revival of King's works, reinvigorated by 2017 he, the announcement of a new take Pet Sematary instantly provoked by fans of Lambert's film and King's novel. When a trailer revealed that Gage would not come back, but his older sister Ellie, well, the outcry was obvious. But now that it's released in theaters, it's easier to understand why this new adaptation does not rewrite the story – the novel and the movie-89 still exist after all. Instead of 2019 Pet Sematary plunges further into the novel than the previous adaptation of certain ways and uses its main changes to support its themes. He also uses the familiarity of the previous film and the novel as a weapon; the more you know about this story, the more likely it will surprise you. Here is an overview of the main changes between them:


The motivations of Jud

In the novel, Jud Crandall lives in front of Creed's house with his wife Norma. He starts a relationship with Louis very early and the friendship is consolidated when Louis takes care of Norma, who is sick, as a doctor. This debt of gratitude largely explains why Jud tells Louis about the Mi'kmaq burial ground, as a way to thank his friend for his kindness. Of course, Jud does not immediately realize that her act of kindness is more an orchestration by the supreme evil of the novel, but still.

In the 1989 film, this evil that is the driving force behind everything in the novel is totally eliminated. Thus, Jud's motivation to share the dark secret of the graveyard is less clear, especially as the film moves on and that it tells horror stories about the undead Timmy Baterman and his own dog. It's a bit like an old man who shares pride and knowledge.

In the adaptation of 2019, it's Ellie with whom Jud (now neighbor) creates a bond from the beginning. Even so, even if he likes him with his cat, he takes Louis to the normal semantic animal to bury the cat after his death on the road. Only when Louis chooses a place and starts digging does Jud hear his name called from the other side of death. This sign invites him to stop Louis and take him to the older and wicked burial place.


The wendigo

The Wendigo, explained in more detail here, is the evil spirit that aspires to be released for a very long time. It is the evil that largely manipulates what happens to the Creed family, especially towards the end, as it actively strives to prevent Rachel and Jud from interfering with Louis' rebuffing of Gage.

The Wendigo does not exist at all in the film '89. Not even a mention. This most certainly occurs in the new adaptation, first with his Jud sign, then with Jud passing his exhibition to Louis via a book. He is hiding in the trees, watching Louis as he takes his dead daughter, Ellie, to a sour place. And his harm is what comes from his grave – it's not Ellie, it's the spirit of the Wendigo. The presence of the Wendigo is not as important or as visible as the novel, but it is still a very good inclusion.


Norma Crandall

As mentioned earlier, Norma plays an important role in highlighting Jud's character and her relationship with Creed. His death is a contribution to the exploration of pain and death by the novel. But she too is cut off from the 1989 film for brevity.

In the 2019 movie, she does not seem to get much better at it, aside from a little scene in which Jud tells Ellie while looking at an old photo. So, at least she has a mention, right? But Norma appears. Moments before the Wendigo plays with Jud, it takes the appearance of Norma to taunt him and tell him his hell.


Zelda and Rachel Creed

At each news story, Rachel Creed is haunted by the death of her older sister, Zelda. At the age of 8, Rachel was forced to take care of the suffering Zelda, bedridden and plagued by meningitis to the spine. As sickness devoured Zelda, she became more bitter and despised the capable body of her younger sister. While she was home alone one day, Zelda was strangled, leaving Rachel struggling to deal with the situation. The trauma has left Rachel with deep-rooted problems about death, a topic she tries to avoid.

In the 1989 film, Zelda is played by a man in his twenties and is a major source of fuel for the movie's nightmare. In the new adaptation, Zelda is performed by a young woman, Alyssa Brooke Levine. In this version of Zelda, Rachel does not make fun of her nightmarish words, but she dies in a heartbreaking way – falling into the mute server of the family. The two film adaptations present very different shots on Zelda, and both can be very annoying.

While Rachel remains perpetually terrified by death in the 1989 film and novel, in the 2019 film, she gives a more satisfying bow. The relationship between Louis and Rachel is much more open. he is aware of Zelda's death well before the opening of the film. There is much less hostility between them as they discuss their opposing views on death and how to talk to Ellie about it. Thematically, this depicts Louis as the pragmatic type who wants to transmit death to his daughter as a natural and clinical thing. Rachel wants to protect her daughter from her grip and completely avoid the subject.

Yet Rachel is proving to be the most serene in the face of death. When their child dies, Louis shouts, "May God take his fucking kid," making this decisive choice to resurrect them in the graveyard (a shouting reminder to Ellie for her pussy, Church in the novel and the movie '89. It is Rachel who understands better the death of her child, the one who understands that it is not her child who has returned, and the one that makes Louis know not to resurrect her as long as she is dying.

In a way, Rachel Creed learned from a young age with her sister Zelda that death can be a gift. She's the only one who really understands that sometimes death is better.


The death of a child

Stephen King

In King's novel and in the 1989 film, it is about a young child, Gage, who runs on the road to make a tragic end by borrowing the Orinco truck. In the novel, the truck driver claims that his foot crashed against gasoline, another sign of Wendigo's clash with the story. In the 1989 film, the driver of the truck is stalling the Ramones. "Sheena is a punk rocker" and is generally distracted while driving a lot, much too fast.

In the new movie, death takes place at Ellie's ninth birthday party (bonus points if you catch adults talking about an enraged St. Bernard at the party table). The two children are on the road, but Louis and Rachel only notice Gage while the driver of the truck (distracted by a message of "Sheena") is crossing it. His parents go to Gage in no time, but the truck rolls over and the trailer slides down the road to kill Ellie. This is a brilliant moment of error that has unfortunately been ruined by the trailers. Otherwise, you'll be sure that Gage has encountered the same end telegraphed before.

As for the exchange of Gage's death for Ellie, it works well. On the one hand, it means that the ghostly Pascow is trying to warn the Creed family through a toddler too young to understand or communicate effectively. It's a little more plausible, I think. As for Ellie, she feels more about the theme, considering that she is the child at an age when she begins to question death herself. His old age also means something much more sinister for the end.


The death of Jud

Jud Crandall is assassinated by Gage undead in the same way in the 1989 novel and film. Gage steals a scalpel from a sleeping Louis and cuts Judah's Achilles tendon under his bed before doing much, much worse . The film of 2019 plays on your knowledge of this scene.

When Jud enters the room, the fireplace immediately turns to the bed. There is a lot of empty space underneath for a child underneath, and we know that Ellie has a scalpel. But this judge seems to be aware of that too, tapping the bed to reveal what might be hiding under. It's empty. There is a sigh of relief because you think you could be spared by this inducing Achille creaking. That's when he arrives at the top of the stairs to go down and is distracted by Church. Ellie passes through the banister and digs with the scalpel. Brutal.


The end

While the 1989 film closely follows the novel, Louis is forced to drop his resurrected and murderous son, Gage, when he finds the bodies of Jud and Rachel. Mad with sorrow, he chooses to bury Rachel in the bitter earth and the last moment brings her back with all its terrible implications.

Obviously, the film of 2019 abandons all this for a new ground. When Rachel rejects her undead daughter, Ellie decides to drop all that is wrong and kill her mother. Louis finally seems to understand the consequences of his actions and decides to kill his daughter. Too bad for him, the lesson comes too late and his attempts are thwarted by his wife now undead. The last picture of the film shows the family of the resurrected undead, including the undead church, surrounding the car that contains the only living member of the Creed family, left Gage.

Their family came to Ludlow, Maine, for a quieter life, where they could spend more time together as a family. That's not what they imagined, but thanks to that evil cemetery, they got it.


What did you think of this new adaptation? Were you dismayed by the changes? Are you a fan of the 1989 film or the novel? Do you think there is space for all three? Sound off below.

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